You might assume that moving files from one device to another is now a simple thing. This is especially true if all your devices are from the same manufacturer, but this is often not the case. Imagine my surprise when I once again came across a 53-year-old method of moving files that is still faster than most modern methods. It’s called FTP.

What is FTP?

FTP stands for “File Transfer Protocol”. The developer Abhay Bhushan developed the protocol back in 1971. In 2023 he was inducted into the Internet Hall of Fame.

FTP is used to send files from a server device to a client. This can be done over the Internet or a local network. For our purposes, we will use FTP to send files from one device (the server) to another (the client) connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

Download an alternative file manager

You’ll probably need to download an alternative file manager first. The default file managers for Android phones, such as Files by Google and Samsung My Files, don’t have built-in FTP support.

Many of the best alternative file managers for Android offer FTP support. I like to recommend Material Files because it is completely free and open source.

You can download material files from the Play Store, but if that’s not an option (say you’ve removed all Google software and turned your Android phone into a plain phone), you can find the app on F-Droid instead.

How to activate the FTP server

The process is largely similar regardless of which file manager you choose. This is what it looks like in material files.

Tap the menu in the top left and select “FTP Server” from the sidebar. The app will then display the FTP server settings. The URL will show what numbers you need to enter on your receiving device to browse the files on your phone. When you’re done, tap the switch next to “Status” at the top to enable the FTP connection.

If you are connecting through your own home network, you can leave the Anonymous Login option enabled. If you want additional privacy, enter a username and password that must be entered on the recipient’s device to access the files.

FTP is an old and insecure protocol. Even with credentials created, your files are transferred unencrypted over the network, making them vulnerable to snooping or interception. Therefore, it is best to only use FTP on your own private network.

If you’re not at home, set up a hotspot on your phone and connect your other device to that network before enabling the FTP connection. Or you should learn how to use SFTP instead.

How to access the FTP server from your computer

FTP used to be built into web browsers, but you can still access it through file managers. You connect to an FTP address by using the ftp:// prefix followed by the numbers displayed on your phone. In this example, the numbers are ftp://192.168.68.62:2121/.

Enter this URL into the address bar at the top of your file manager. If you don’t know where the address bar is, you can often access it by clicking on the file manager window and pressing Ctrl+L.

Your file manager will ask you to enter a username and password or to connect anonymously. Choose the option that works according to the settings you have set for the server.

At this point, the files on your phone will appear in your file manager as if you were browsing local files on your computer. You can manage these files just like local files. Copy and paste entire folders. Reorganize your phone’s internal storage. Create backups. It works.

You can manage files even faster by downloading a dedicated FTP client like Filezilla, which is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. You can even use FTP in a terminal if you want.

When you’re done, be sure to turn the server off on your phone.

In the world of technology, FTP is downright ancient. Given the security issues, it’s understandable why companies aren’t racing to make FTP the standard way to share files. Even for the informed and cautious user, it’s easy to forget they left an FTP server turned on. But on your own network or a private hotspot, the risks of FTP are low and it’s a proven tool for the job.